Aircrafts require pre-flight and maintenance electrical servicing. When an aircraft is parked on the ground or on an aircraft carrier or the like, power is typically supplied via an electrical cable assembly. The cable assembly typically includes a power source attached at one cable end, and the other end is free to be attached to a power receptacle on the body of the aircraft. Different aircrafts employ different types of electrical power systems, and therefore there is a compatibility requirement for the electrical cable assemblies and the aircraft power receptacles.
Traditionally, most of the aircrafts deployed on US Navy ships have a 115 VAC/400 Hz AC, electrical power system. In order to perform maintenance and pre-flight operations, aircrafts are outfitted with an external power receptacle, typically a six pole NATO standard per MS90362. The existing Aircraft Electrical Servicing System (AESS) aboard US Navy ships provide electrical power to embarked aircraft by way of a portable servicing cable assembly with a plug that fits the MS90362 receptacle. Next generation aircrafts like the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) have a 270 VDC electrical power system and have a 270 VDC external power receptacle. As a result, any ship or airport that will receive the JSF will need to provide 270 VDC electrical power for maintenance and pre-flight operations.
The introduction of JSFs in addition to the traditional aircraft will have a significant cost, infrastructure, size and weight impacts to the carrier ships, if a plurality of power systems are to be provided on each carrier ship. Thus, it is desired to provide a single power system that is compatible with both the 115 VAC/400 Hz AC and the 270V DC systems. It is also desired to have a power supply system that is relatively inexpensive and that does not require a significant change in infrastructure.